Moving North Carolina towards Clean Energy a Necessary Step to Combat Climate Change

CHAPEL HILL, N.C.—The Southern Environmental Law Center issued the following statement regarding today’s release of a draft clean energy plan by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.

“We applaud Governor Cooper for taking action to reduce carbon pollution in the face of the harm suffered by North Carolina residents and businesses from increasingly intense storms and flooding events,” said Gudrun Thompson, senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center.  “Moving the state away from dirty fossil fuels to clean energy sources is integral to lowering carbon pollution and avoiding the worst impacts of climate change. Now is the time for bold action to address ongoing climate change, which affects all North Carolinians but disproportionately harms the most vulnerable. We’ll review the plan and look forward to working with the state towards the goal of a better future for North Carolinians.”

The draft clean energy plan is open for public comment period until September 9, 2019, and the comment form is available online at https://deq.nc.gov/cleanenergyplancomment

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For more than 30 years, the Southern Environmental Law Center has used the power of the law to champion the environment of the Southeast. With more than 80 attorneys and nine offices across the region, SELC is widely recognized as the Southeast’s foremost environmental organization and regional leader. SELC works on a full range of environmental issues to protect our natural resources and the health and well-being of all the people in our region. www.SouthernEnvironment.org